Improving cancer care around the world

With cancer now the leading cause of death in low- and middle-income countries, it’s important to urge leaders around the world to address global disparities in cancer care, according to health economist Felicia Knaul.

Knaul, director of the Harvard Global Equity Initiative and associate professor at Harvard Medical School, was profiled on her work to address cancer care inequities in the fall 2014 issue of Cancer Today. Knaul spoke about being a breast cancer survivor; about her efforts to increase breast cancer screening in Mexico; and about her work on improving cancer care—including improving access to pain control—in the developing world.

Julio Frenk, dean of Harvard School of Public Health and Knaul’s husband, said he credits Knaul with bringing the issue of the increasing burden of cancer on developing countries to the forefront. “I think Felicia has really opened our understanding of this new frontier in health inequities,” he said.

Read the Cancer Today article: Closing the Cancer Care Gap

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